


Let’s Skip To The Tiebreaker

by interstelklance (ravenlily)



Series: Mass Effect AU [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe: Mass Effect, M/M, Mass Effect AU, Sexual Tension, sexual tension and two idiots, that’s it that’s the fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-21
Updated: 2020-01-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:40:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,288
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22351222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ravenlily/pseuds/interstelklance
Summary: Keith and Lance have a conversation about winding down, battle, and reach and flexibility.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Series: Mass Effect AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1608934
Comments: 6
Kudos: 56





	Let’s Skip To The Tiebreaker

**Author's Note:**

  * For [zenstrike](https://archiveofourown.org/users/zenstrike/gifts).



> For Zen, who has been a wonderful friend and is always there to inspire me to write more Mass Effect Klance. I hope this brightens your day just a bit <3

The thud of his boots on the metal flooring is familiar by now - and no doubt alerting everyone  _ exactly  _ where he’s going. 

Again.

Keith doesn’t even have the energy to lie to himself, or hide the small smile on his face as the door to the main battery  _ whooshes  _ open, leaving a perfect view of Lance, bent over his console. In full armor - the tight black pants perfectly accentuating the curve of his ass, the thigh high plates pushing against his muscles  _ just so _ . Keith tries not to look, but really - he never claimed to be perfect. 

“Having some trouble?” 

Lance jerks upright, his wrench clanging to the ground as he whirls around. “Nope! Well, I mean, a little, but not what you’d classify as ‘trouble’, yknow? Those gun upgrades just made some of the calibrations wonky so I have to do a little finagling.”

“Ah, I see. Well,” Keith says, sliding past Lance to plop himself down on the bench in the corner, “I just wanted to check on you. You know -“

“Ah ah ah! Nooooooope. Not doing that - you don’t have a thing to apologize for. I’m glad you stopped by, really...I wanted to thank you.” Lance leans back against the console, fingers drumming along the edge. “For that whole mess back there. You made the right call. And - and I know that whatever happens with the Collectors or the Reapers or whoever comes after us...I know you’ll get the job done.”

Keith leans forward with,  _ damn him _ , a smile on his face. He’d been expecting anger, maybe a little resentment for not letting Lance take revenge on someone. For making the call instead of allowing Lance be blinded by the past. But acceptance?  _ Thanks?  _ Keith isn’t sure what to do with it, but he’ll take it in anyway. 

“You know I couldn’t do this without you, Lance.” He says, the warmth in his tone undeniable.

“Sure you could,” he says, fingers coming up to make little guns in Keith’s direction, “just not as stylishly.”

He even throws in a damn  _ wink. _ Keith’s heart is never going to recover, if he’s being honest. Just gonna file that away to get red in the face over later. 

Lance’s smile goes a little smaller, but not in a painful, dimming way. Just showing Keith he wants to change direction, move onto something that isn’t quite so raw. 

“It’s strange,” he says, turning to rest his hip on the console instead of his back, facing Keith more fully now. “Going into a suicide mission on an Alliance ship, I mean. Your people don’t prepare for high risk operations the way mercenaries do.”

“I thought you’d be used to high risk operations on Alliance ships. I mean, think about tracking Zarkon to Altea.”

“Sure,” he agrees, his mouth doing that little  _ tilt _ that makes Keith lose all sense in his damn head, “but that was quick. We raced in, landed, blew up some mechs, and saved the galaxy. But this time,” he stops, eyes dropping to his hands, “this time, we’ve got Allura and Cerberus and that artificial intelligence telling us what we’re up against.”

Keith arches an eyebrow at him, leaning back against the wall and gesturing with his hand.

“I think I preferred blind optimism is what I’m saying.” 

Keith hums, and hitches an arm on the back of the bench. “And how exactly do merc crews get ready for high-risk missions?”

Lance throws his head back and laughs, grin bright on his face. “With violence, usually. Mercenary ships have more operational discipline than your Alliance, but fewer personal restrictions. Our Commander ran us tight, and knew we needed to blow off steam. They have these big training rooms for like combat sims and exercising - even full contact sparring.”

“You mean to tell me that mercenary ships have crew  _ fighting each other _ before a mission?” Keith says incredulously. He’s all about training and a little bit of hand to hand - but not if it compromises his chances of getting people out alive. 

“Yeah man, but it’s all supervised. Nobody’s gonna risk an injury, and it’s a good way to settle disagreements without actually endangering anyone.”

“Really? And that works?”

“Oh yeah. Mercenaries are more organized and military like than they used to be - just a little looser with certain rules.” Lance says, shrugging. “Heck, I remember one time me and this recon scout had been at each other’s  _ throats.  _ Nerves, mostly, pre-mission jitters. She suggested we settle it in the ring.”

Keith has  _ been _ on the receiving end of Lance’s sparring - it wasn’t something to make light of. Sure he held his own, but a recon scout? “I assume you took her down gently?”

“Actually,” Lance chuckles, “she and I were the top rated hand-to-hand specialists on the ship. I had reach, but she had flexibility.”

He shoves off of the console, his feet carrying him across the room and back. “It was brutal. After nine rounds the judge called it a draw. There were a  _ lot  _ of unhappy betters in the training room. We, ah, ended up holding a tiebreaker in her quarters. I had reach, but she had flexibility.”

Lance shrugs, smirk firmly in place. “More than one way to work off stress, I guess.”

Keith takes in the atmosphere, heart pounding in his chest. And - it’s not like he’s  _ blind,  _ okay? He  _ knows  _ that Lance has been flirting with him, and he’s hoping that this is a hint because if it’s  _ not  _ he’s about to make a complete ass of himself. 

Keith braces himself but makes his shoulders relax as he stands, hands skimming along Lance’s as he walks over and leans against the console. “You know, it sounds like you’re still carrying some tension. Maybe I could help you get rid of it.”

_ Oh shit oh shit why did I say that?! Fucking hell he‘s going to punch me I can feel it- _

“Really?” Lance asks, his eyes lighting up. “I didn’t think you’d feel like sparring, Keith.”

_ Fuck it. _

“What if we skipped right to the tiebreaker? We could test your reach...my flexibility?”

Whatever Keith was expecting, it’s surely not Lance’s eyes flying wide, red creeping up from under his armor to envelop his face clear to his hairline. 

“Oh! I- well- huh! I uh, didn’t know you had a thing for men with scars.” His hand comes up to tap the pale patch of skin tearing through his eyebrow, down his cheek and ending near his jawline. Lance seems to stop, his brain finally catching up with the conversation, his eyes going dark and contemplative as he stares at Keith. “Well, why the hell not. There’s nobody in this galaxy I respect more than you. Might as well give it a shot.”

Keith feels one kind of tension leave him, even as another takes its place. This isn’t... _ exactly _ what he was after, wasn’t what he came here to ask.  _ Dinner  _ before sex, but his damn  _ mouth  _ had gotten him into this corner and he was  _ not  _ going to throw it away. 

So he shoves his panic down and takes two steps into Lance’s space, their lips a breath apart, noses touching. Keith looks into his wide eyes, his fingers gently tapping Lance’s chin while he tips his head up, the air between them electric as Keith’s biotics light up his veins. Lance breathes in his air and closes his eyes, his shoulders slumping forward to bump against Keith’s. 

_ Got him. _

“Soon, then,” he breathes, and slides out the door before Lance can stop him. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Allura nearly falls out of her chair when he runs into her office, redder than a tomato and already begging her to end him.


End file.
